The present invention relates to an ultrasonic transducer drive circuit and an ultrasonic image display apparatus.
An ultrasonic transducer drive circuit is a circuit for driving an ultrasonic transducer by outputting pulses made by a positive voltage pulse and a negative voltage pulse to an output line of the ultrasonic transducer. As such an ultrasonic transducer drive circuit, for example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2009-101072 discloses a circuit having a positive voltage supply circuit for supplying positive voltage to the output line and a negative voltage supply circuit for supplying negative voltage to the output line. In the ultrasonic transducer drive circuit, when a negative voltage pulse is generated in a state where the voltage in the output line is positive voltage, the negative voltage supply circuit is operated and, to generate a positive voltage pulse in a state where the voltage in the output line is negative voltage, the positive voltage supply circuit is operated.
When the negative voltage supply circuit is operated at the time of generating the negative voltage pulse in a state where the voltage in the output line is positive voltage, current flows in the negative voltage supply circuit for predetermined time and power is consumed. When the positive voltage supply circuit is operated at the time of generating the positive voltage pulse in a state where the voltage in the output line is negative voltage, current flows in the positive voltage supply circuit for predetermined time and power is consumed. Therefore, suppression of power consumption in the positive voltage supply circuit and the negative voltage supply circuit is an issue.